Chapter 52: Whispers from the Ruins
Two weeks slipped by, and Dion’s domain expanded even further than before. The arrival of the Aetherias Trading Company a few days prior brought in a surge of workers to build up and widen the settlement, while ninety golems worked nonstop erecting the city perimeter walls. Thanks to Aria’s extensive network and Edgar’s management, local artisans, blacksmiths, and Adventurer Guild staff began trickling into town.
Sheila and Mei formed a village guard squad out of the locals they had trained, tirelessly drilling them day after day. Meanwhile, Luna occasionally traveled with Aria to neighboring towns like Millfrost to shop and bring back willing settlers, spreading the word about the new town and drawing in even more newcomers. All the while, Cleo kept the entire domain shrouded beneath her protective barrier, granting access to anyone newly arrived.
By midday, Dion stood outside his mansion taking in the town’s growth with Gina perched on his shoulder, his face a mix of swirling emotions.
"How did my place get this huge... it feels like we’re building a whole city... but I guess it’s pretty nice... and most importantly, they won’t let me lift a finger to work... somehow... finally... I’m actually retired," Dion thought to himself with a broad grin.
"Kyuuu?" Gina asked, turning her head from his shoulder to look at his face.
"Yep, it’s getting lively... but it’s not as bad as I thought... actually, I think I like it this way," Dion replied, gently stroking Gina’s head.
"Kyuuu... kyuu," Gina purred, instantly perking up.
Just then, Dion spotted the local children walking down the hill behind his mansion carrying their books.
"Looks like Luna’s finished her class, let’s head up there," Dion said to Gina.
"Kyuuu," she chirped.
They made their way to the back hill and climbed up behind the mansion. Upon reaching the top, Dion found Luna and Cleo standing near the edge of the cliff, positioned directly to the left and right of the obelisk behind his parents’ grave. They were staring down into a circular chasm roughly a kilometer wide, encircled by numerous obelisks, five still standing tall, with a single obelisk resting in the middle.
"So this is where you two were," Dion said, stepping up between them.
"Yeah... I just wrapped up class," Luna replied, keeping her gaze fixed ahead.
Dion glanced at Luna and Cleo’s serious expressions, then looked ahead, unable to tell what they were staring at.
"What’s going on? Why are you two so serious?" Dion asked.
"I don’t know why... but I feel something coming from this place," Cleo answered.
"Come to think of it... me too, but for some reason, I feel comfortable here," Luna added.
"There you go again, acting all strange," Dion said, rubbing the back of his neck.
"I’m just saying what I feel. Do you actually know what’s down there?" Cleo asked Dion.
"No idea... it’s been like this since I was a kid. Though I used to come up here to play all the time, which is why I buried my parents here," Dion answered casually.
"Is that so," Cleo replied, turning her eyes back toward the chasm.
"Wait... but when you buried your mom and dad, didn’t you mention there was a secret chamber here? I remember you showing it to me back then," Luna said, turning to Dion.
"Oh... over there."
Dion pointed to his left. Luna and Cleo looked over to see a large stone structure resembling the ruined pillar of a building right beside them. Dion led the two girls over to the pillar-like stone. Standing in front of it, Luna and Cleo were surprised to find that there were actually two pillars flanking a tablet-shaped tombstone, covered in ancient scripts that were mostly eroded and half-crumbled by time.
"Huh... what is this?" Cleo asked, inspecting the tablet closely.
"Beat me. Ever since I was a kid, these stones have been here. Don’t overthink it, it’s probably just the ruins of an ancient building," Dion replied offhandedly.
Luna stepped forward and squatted, narrowing her eyes to read the inscriptions, but she shook her head, unable to decipher the ancient script written on the stone. She turned to Cleo.
"Can you read this, Cleo?" Luna asked, pointing at the stone tablet.
Cleo leaned in and squinted, her eyes darting left to right, right to left, and up to down before she shook her head.
"I don’t get it at all. I’ve never seen characters like these before... and they’re definitely not runes," Cleo replied.
"Forget it, don’t worry about it. Let me get down, the golem servants should have lunch ready by now," Dion chimed in.
"Okay... let’s head down," Cleo agreed.
"Yeah... let’s go," Luna added, standing up.
They turned to leave, but Gina suddenly floated off Dion’s shoulder and landed on top of the tablet. "Kyuuu?" Gina made a sound, looking downward.
"Hey... Gina, come on over here," Dion said, stepping toward her.
"Kyuu... kyuu," Gina pointed to the tablet beneath her with a cute yet serious expression.
"Huh... is there something underneath?" Dion asked.
Dion walked up to the tablet and crouched in front of it. Gina hovered over to his shoulder and pointed down once more.
"Kyuuuu," she squeaked.
"Here?" Dion asked, parting the tall grass blocking the base of the tablet.
He pulled away the overgrown grass. Upon seeing the bottom of the tablet, Dion’s eyes widened. Carved into the stone was the figure of a black knight wielding a broadsword, an assassin carrying twin daggers, a warrior monk standing tall with palms pressed together, a man wielding twin pistols, a mage floating with outstretched arms, and a robed king raising his hand forward as if giving a command, with a massive dragon towering behind him.
Beside them stood one more figure, though it was faint and faded beyond recognition from time, clearly depicting someone running away. Beneath them was a short ancient inscription consisting of just three letters. Staring at the relief, Dion stood agape, examining each figure intently, he recognized every single one of them.
"Wow... these are... my personas?" Dion thought in his head.
"Kyuuuu," Gina nodded repeatedly.
His gaze shifted to the man who looked like a king and the massive dragon behind him, whose shape had grown blurry and obscured by time.
"Hmm... this is... another persona of mine... one I haven’t unlocked yet, with a dragon?" Dion thought to himself.
"Kyuuu... kyuu," Gina pointed at the dragon carving and then at herself, looking up at Dion.
"Oh, right, you’re the dragon, haha," Dion replied, catching Gina in his hands.
"Hey."
Dion turned to see Cleo and Luna standing behind him with confused expressions and hands on their hips.
"You said you were heading down," Luna said.
"Why are you so distracted? What are you looking at?" Cleo asked.
Dion stood up while holding Gina, approaching the two girls with a bright smile.
"It’s nothing. Let’s head down," Dion urged.
"Sigh... honestly. Fine... let’s go," Luna said.
They began walking down the hill. As they passed the obelisk behind his parents’ grave, Dion glanced back. For the first time, he noticed an engraved relief carved deep into the stone, a greatsword just like the one his Black Knight persona used.
"Hmm... interesting. I never noticed that before. Guess I’ll investigate tonight," he thought to himself before turning down the trail with Cleo and Luna.
***
Meanwhile, at that exact moment inside an office at the royal palace of Minatheras...
"So you know the man King Gred spoke of, the one occupying the land at the heart of the dark forest?" King Theobald asked, standing by the window overlooking his city.
"That is correct, Your Majesty."
Theobald turned around to face a handsome young man with blond hair, clad in golden armor with a sword strapped to his hip.
"What is your name?" Theobald asked.
"Rene von Ostrich. I hold the SS-rank Sword Saint class and am an S-rank adventurer in the capital of Minatheras. I come before Your Majesty because the man holding that territory was previously a member of my party whom I kicked out," Rene replied, bowing his head in introduction.
"And you believe he is the Demon Lord mentioned in the prophecy?" Theobald pressed.
"Without a doubt, Your Majesty. His monstrous dark power and the way he manipulated so many people into living in his domain, including my girl, Luna, confirm the suspicions I’ve had all along," Rene answered, clenching his fists tight.
"Hmm... according to King Gred, the royal court mage of Lutherias and the princess of Thetor are also there, correct?" Theobald asked.
"That is correct, Your Majesty. They have completely fallen for the Demon Lord’s deception," Rene stated with absolute conviction.
"Then why come to me with this report?" Theobald asked, staring at Rene.
"Because I know Your Majesty Theobald is mighty and would never be fooled by that Demon Lord. Furthermore, the Kingdom of Minatheras is the largest and strongest among the five realms. Naturally, I would bring this to Your Majesty rather than any other king," Rene replied firmly.
Theobald remained silent for a moment. He walked back toward his desk and sat down. Rene stepped up to the front of the desk. Silence hung in the air as Theobald’s face grew deeply serious, folding his hands together on the desk. Still, a glint of satisfaction crossed his face from Rene’s flattery. Rene stood quietly before the king.
"Very well. Thank you for this information. I will consider our next move. How would you like to join the Royal Knights? I appreciate your honesty and the courage it took to stand before me. Besides, your class is SS-rank Sword Saint, isn’t it?" Theobald said.
Upon hearing Theobald’s offer, Rene’s face lit up. He dropped to one knee before the king.
"It would be my absolute honor, Your Majesty. I swear my complete loyalty to the Kingdom of Minatheras," Rene declared.
"Good," Theobald replied with a smile.
Rene bowed his head, a wide, arrogant grin spreading across his face.
"Just you wait, Dion. Your domain will be flattened to the ground in no time," Rene thought in his heart.